Tony Woolrich is an oddity for '40s mysteries—a newspaper man who decidedly does not think of himself as a detective. In fact, this film opens with a murder at the theater, and all theater critic Woolrich wants to do is get back to his paper and review the play. He is encouraged to pursue the mystery by his editor, who is understandably upset that the paper has missed a big scoop, and also by his sidekick, Romeo the cab driver. Eventually throwing himself into the job, Tony turns out to be surprisingly good at detective work (for a drama critic, anyway!) and his connections in the theater world help him quickly surpass the little progress achieved by rather dim police detective Walsh (Jack Mulhall).Dave O'Brien as Tony is earnest and appealing; Frank Jenks as Romeo is appropriately helpful and smart-alecky. (Tony: "I know it's a boorish thing to do but I'd like to follow her." Romeo: "All detectives are boorish, don't let that worry you.") Kay Aldridge is good but unmemorable as leading lady Claudia Moore in a role that doesn't offer much in the way of surprises.Alan Mowbray is fun as the famous actor at the center of the mysterious events, and even gets to declaim a few lines from Julius Caesar in a climactic scene.Disguises, old grudges, secret marriages…oh, those actors' lives are so full of intrigue!

"The death of a performer at a Broadway stage play brings a theatre critic and a police detective together as an unlikely crime-solving duo. The dead performer's niece becomes not only the object of affection for our critic, but also a prime suspect in this death, and some other murders that occur at the theatre. 'The Phantom Killer' sets his sights upon the young woman as his next victim; so, it is a race against time for our heroes to catch the killer," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Milton Raison's screenplay puts a little spark in this low-budget mystery whodunit. Helpfully, Dave O'Brien (as Anthony "Tony" Woolrich) does well in the lead role; his skills as an actor appear to be much greater than the productions employing him. O'Brien and cab driving sidekick Frank Jenks (as Egbert "Romeo" Egglehoffer) would have made a fine 1950s TV detective team. Leading lady Kay Aldridge (as Claudia Moore) and the supporting cast are also good. Unfortunately, the story becomes meandering, and anti-climactic.**** The Phantom of 42nd Street (5/2/45) Albert Herman ~ Dave O'Brien, Kay Aldridge, Frank Jenks

I've just seen The Phantom Of 42nd Street for the first time and found it fairly enjoyable, but a little talkie at times.A critic and police investigate a series of murders that have taken place on the set of a play. Three people have been killed in all and in order to catch the killer, a performance of Julius Caesar is held. Will the killer be caught? This is an interesting little movie and atmospheric but I found it a little slow moving in parts.The cast includes Dave O'Brien (The Devil Bat), Kay Aldridge and Alan Mowbray (Terror By Night).Though not brilliant, The Phantom Of 42nd Street is worth watching. A good time filler for an hour or so.Rating: 2 and a half stars out of 5.

A haughty theatre critic is co-opted by his editor to investigate a sleazy backstage murder. Reluctant at first, he warms to the task through the enthusiastic prodding of his Shakespeare-loving, cab-driver sidekick and his developing interest in the aristocratic young lady involved in the case. For the Charlie-Chan-like climax, he sets up an audition of Julius Caesar, hoping to lure the murderer into all-to-realistically participating in the assassination scene. Imagine what a breezy and biting satire Hecht and MacArthur could have made of that premise. Unfortunately, the idea ended up at lowly PRC studios, which assigned the picture to Albert Herman, one of the most inept directors in history. At least Ed Wood and Andy Milligan had some flair and energy (no matter how misguided), but Herman just contributed dullness to all he touched (coincidentally, the final plot revelations have some ingredients in common with Wood's "Jailbait"). Thankfully, the cast of B-movie stalwarts makes the entire outing at least watchable. Prolific Dave O'Brien cops a rare leading role, and although disappointingly subdued, he elicits intelligence and charm throughout (unfortunately, he's now best remembered for his giggly emoting in "Reefer Madness" and not his many fine comic character turns in both features and shorts).